Saturday February 28

Hello to all. Clay has now been in the Burn ICU for 14 days. Deidra and I feel like we have been here 14 years. Clay had a rough day today. He slept very little last night. When I arrived at 6:00 a.m. his night nurse said she was glad I arrived. Clay was running a fever and was very emotional. I told him he was going to be fine and I held his hand and talked to him until he calmed down and rested. When I came in he tried to open his eyes. Jennifer, the nurse, asked him if he wanted her to open his eyes so he could see Dad. It hurts when they open them because the skin is very tender. He quickly shook his head no. Clay fought a fever all day. The doctors came in between 9 and 10 during the dressing change to assess his grafts. Dr. Purdue came to the waiting room and let us know he was pleased with Clay's progress up to this point. This afternoon a therapist came in with little custom made boots for his feet and ankles. He has lain in bed with his feet pointing down and the boots are made to stretch his tendons back out so he can walk when the day comes. We are still anxious to meet the new doctor and his team. No one has given us any indication of next weeks plans. We hope everyone has a good Sunday. Please remember Clay and the Fites in your prayers. We are thankful for all of the kindness and help.

Friday, February 27

Hope everyone has had a good day. We had a good day in the Burn ICU. When we went in for the 6:00 a.m. visit, Clay really wanted to open his eyes. He tried several times and I explained to him he was not ready to open them yet and that it would not be long before he could. The night nurse for Clay and another of his nurses said that he talked to them last night. They had to turn him on his side to change his dressing. The nurse said, "Clay, we are going to turn you on your side to change your bandages". They were surprised when he responded with a forceful "No!" through his trachea tube. She then told him that they had to turn him on his other side. He responded once again with "No". She told us that he knows exactly what he wants. Mom has been at home with the other boys (they haven't been feeling well - stress probably has a lot to do with this too). Clay was breathing on his own today. When Mom arrived this afternoon, she sang some hymns to him. This relaxed him so much, that the respiratory therapist had to come in 4 times to make sure he was getting the proper amount of oxygen. After the 4th time, Mom decided that she should let him concentrate on his breathing. The nurse explained to us that after two weeks on the machine he had started to rely on it and he would have to recondition his little lungs to start the breathing process again. We rubbed his left hand each visit and told him how much progress he had made. We feel like all of the prayers have done wonders in the healing process, please continue. We had several folks visit today and all were appreciated. Thank you to everyone, we have been overwhelmed by the support and generosity. Also, a special thanks to Grandma Joy for taking care of the boys & us while we rotate back and forth.

Thursday February 26th

Hello to everyone out there. Today was a day of rest for Clay. He and I read several books and had some good one sided conversation. He seems to be doing well. During one of the morning visits today a therapist came in and exercised his left arm and hand a little. She said we could help him do these exercises each time we visited and we have taken that to heart. We are going to work new life back into that arm and hand. Clay had a family from Olney stop by today and it was one of his best friends from Mrs. Sherry's 4 School. Morgan drew him a picture with a note and when I removed it from my pocket and told him what I had he was really excited. At the 5:00 visit this afternoon the nurse had been helping him scratch his nose and she had cleaned much of the burned skin from his little nose. It was a vibrant pink underneath and we told her how encouraging it was to see his nose again with out all of the bandages. When we came back in at 7:30 to tell him goodnight we were in for an even bigger surprise. The same nurse had worked on the area around his mouth and out to the more severe burns on the sides of his face. There was new skin under the cleaned off area and no bandages around his chin so we received our first unobstructed view of Clay since the 14th. It does not take much to encourage parents and we know there are many trials and procedures in the future, but it seems each day God gives us a little ray of sunshine and it is much appreciated. Thank you to everyone who has called, stopped by, posted a comment, or helped in ways we are unaware of. Deidra and I have been amazed by the love, help, and support of friends and family. Last but not least I would like to thank Dr. Purdue and all the residents who have been with us through the first three surgeries. You have done a great job and we are thankful.

T-shirt deadline

The deadline for ordering the t-shirts for Clay is March 27, 2009. Thanks!

Wednesday February 25

Surgery III.
Well it has been 11 days since the accident and Clay has now been through his third surgery. They worked this morning on his right arm and hand. He went into surgery around 8:00 a.m. and Dee Dee and I waited patiently until 11:15 at about this time Dr. Purdue came up and called us out of the waiting room to walk us through what he had done. He worked primarily on the areas mentioned above but, having a little skin left over did a couple of small area below the belt that need the grafts. He was pleased with the progress so far. He said there will probably be another procedure scheduled next week if everything remains stable. He will not be our lead surgeon next month. There are two burn doctors at Parkland and they alternate every 30 days. We have not met the new doctor yet but he will bring in his own team of physicians and we have already become attached to several members of Dr. Purdue's team, and Dr. Purdue himself. All of the nurses will be the same and they have assured us that it will be a seamless transition and we will be happy with the new team. We are aware of all of the prayers that are going up for Clay and we know that is why he has done well up to this point. Each time we ask about the left hand the doctors and nurses let us know it is severely burned, and only time will tell.
During our early morning visit, we explained to Clay that the doctors were going to fix his hurt spots. He nodded his head as if he understood. We realize it is in God's hands and try to draw comfort from the fact that he can heal all wounds. Thanks to all who have prayed, donated or visited.

Email Account Hacked!!!

Dee Dee's hotmail email account was hacked and is in the process of being closed. If you have Dee Dee in your contact list, please go in and block/delete the old address. We are in the process of creating her a new email account. Some of you have received bogus emails from Dee Dee's hacked account. Please just disregard them. If you need to contact the Fites, you can still email Dee Dee's sister, Jenae, at the email address posted in a previous blog. Thank you for all of your continued prayers and support!

February 24, 2009

This is Jenae filling in for DD-she is completely exhausted and can't think clearly. Let's hope she gets plenty of rest tonight!

Well, we made it through another day!

Today the nurse came in and asked Clay to give her a "high 5". He gave her a "low 5" instead. He was able to raise his whole arm, but not very high :)

Granny Martha (Jenae's mother-in-law) was in with him this morning and squeezed his foot. She said, "I...(squeeze)...love (squeeze)...you (squeeze), Clay! She then said, "Can you hear me, Clay? and his little toes went wiggle, wiggle, wiggle!

They took the bandages off the chest area today to check on the grafts that were done last Friday. It took 1 and 1/2 hrs to remove the bandages! Once removed, they discovered that the chest grafts took 80-90%. So...that was great news!

Clay was restless at one point today. Grandma Joy was in there and asked him, "Clay, do you hurt? and he shook his head, "No". Then, she asked, "Are you hot?" and he nodded, "Yes", so she fanned him with the blanket he had on him. He has run a fever off and on today. His little body is sure working overtime to heal!

When momma is in the room and telling him that she is getting all his sugar and giving him lots of kisses, he turns his head towards her. He knows his momma! :)

He is still breathing with the help of the respirator.

Clay is having surgery Wed. morning at 8 a.m. He is the only burn ICU surgery scheduled that day. The doctors will do skin grafts on his right hand and his right arm. We pray that it all goes well!

Clay Fite T-Shirts

This is Jenae...again! Some very thoughtful folks in Olney, TX have come up with a fundraiser for little Clay. They are selling t-shirts with a little cowboy on a stick horse and the words "Fite Squad" across the front in black letters. (see picture above) The shirts will be red because red is the school color. Cheerleaders are going to try to designate a "Clay Day" for everyone to wear their shirts.

The local Olney folks can place orders at First National Bank, Don Antonios, Olney Floral, and Farmers National Bank. Also, all of the Olney ISD students will go home with an order form this week as well as the kiddos at DeeDee's school. If you don't live in Olney, you can still order shirts, but they will be mailed to you once your payment is received by Misti Ondricek.

The ordering information is listed below:

T-shirt Fundraiser to benefit the Fite Family

T-shirts will be red with the above graphic (Fite Squad with the cowboy)

$12 each

$15 if mailed to you

Orders must be pre-paid.

Please give name, department, address and phone number then select shirt size and quantity:

Youth Extra Small

Youth Small

Youth Medium

Youth Large

Youth Extra Large

Adult Small

Adult Medium

Adult Large

Adult XL

Adult XXL (add $1.50)

Extended sizes - specify size - add $1.50

Total Amount paid___________ Check __________ Cash_____________

Please make checks payable to "Fite Squad" and mail payments to:

Misti Ondricek

305 Wade St.

Olney, TX 76374

If you have any questions please call Misti Ondricek at 940-564-6969.

Some New Blood Donor information

This is Jenae posting again...remotely! I was just informed about being able to give blood for Clay if you cannot get to a Carter Blood Bank. The following information was sent to me by a friend:

Carter Blood Bank has told us that one can give blood at any blood bank that is a member of the National Blood Exchange and that does donor credits. They ask that one would just give the following info:

Clay Fite
Parkland Memorial Hospital
Dallas TX

Beverly Johnson, with Carter Blood Bank, can be contacted if someone needs assistance in locating a blood bank in their area. She can be reached at 817-412-5125.

Hope this helps those of you who are outside the Carter Blood Center area. Thanks for donating!

Monday, February 23

This is my first time to post a blog, so please bear with me. Chance & Jenae have posted prior to today, & now I have to learn how to do this. Clay had a pretty active day! He is moving his arms and legs some. The nurses lessen his sedation, if possible, so he can respond to us before we visit.
When we walked into his room this morning and said "Good morning", he lifted his arms and and opened his mouth. I look forward to the day when I can hold him in my arms. After our 6:00 am visit, he caused some excitement when his breathing tube came loose. He was moving too much. He really tries to move when we talk to him.
On another visit today, Grandma was going to read him a book and he started raising his arms and legs and trying to open his eyes and would have responded if he could have talked. The nurse said, "Calm down Clay and relax! Grandma is going to read you a book! Do you want Grandma to read you a book?" He nodded yes! She put more "calming" medicine in to keep him from getting too active. It's nice to know that "Clay" is under there somewhere :-)!
The doctor came in the waiting room today and said he was moving this week's surgery up from Friday to Wednesday. He said he was pleased with his right hand and he was pleased with his right arm. When asked what he was going to do surgery on, he said since his right arm was doing so well he thought he would work on it.
We usually try to talk to Clay to get some response out of him and to reassure him that he will be okay. Today we sang to him a lot trying to calm him down! :-) The doctors will check his chest/stomach in the morning from his surgery last Friday. We will know tomorrow how well his skin grafts are doing in that area.
Before I post this, I just want to say "Thank You." Words cannot express our thankfulness. During the past 10 days, we have experienced emotions that are beyond words. The outpouring of love, support, concern & kindness is overwhelming. Thank you from the depths of our hearts!

Sunday February 22

Good evening to all. It was a long and rewarding day in Burn ICU. Deidra and I made both of the early morning visits and we let the nurse know we were going to meeting and would try to be back before the 11:00 visit was over. We did not make it back to the hospital until about 12:15 as we rushed off the elevator we walked right into the burn team doctors. They had done an evaluation on Clay while we were out and we were anxious to hear their thoughts. They said everything was going according to plan and he would definitely be on the schedule for a surgery next week. We were encouraged by this. When we went in for the 2:00 visit I asked the nurse about the evaluation and she said the doctors had told her that nearly 100% of the graft on the back had taken and appeared to be viable. The doctors had told use that 85 to 90 percent was considered a good graft. It appears that everyone's prayers are being answered. Thank you. Carson, Cody and I came to Olney tonight. Mr. Cody Fite is turning 7 years old tomorrow and we knew someone should be here to celebrate with him. The blood drive in Graham, TX was a success. The Carter blood mobile had an overwhelming response. They collected approximately 65 units of blood that were donated for Clay. It seems they underestimated the heart of Texoma, in that they had to turn away over 100 donors, because they did not have the storage containers for any more blood. Thank you to all who made the effort to donate. We know that there will be difficult days ahead, but we also know that we have received encouragement over the last few days because of the prayers and help that Clay is receiving from all over the country. Thanks to all and good night.

Saturday February 21st

Thank you to all who chose to spend your Saturday visiting the Fite family. We have had so much support from friends and family. We are truly amazed by the number of people who have been in touch and are trying to help our little boy. We received a bit of a surprise today from the doctors and Clay. We attended all of the morning visits and Clay seemed to be doing fine. At the 11:00 a.m. visit Crystal the nurse informed us that she was taking all of the drugs that were inducing paralysis out of Clay's system. She had child restraints on his arms and said that as soon as the drugs were out of his body we could anticipate some movement. We did not know that this was scheduled for today and were a bit apprehensive. She told us the doctors had decided at their morning meeting that Clay was ready to start assisting in the breathing process and they needed him to start exercising his diaphragm and make sure his lungs were functioning properly. She said it could take 4 to 6 hours for the medication to get out of his system. When we came back for the 2:00 visit he was assisting the ventilator and taking in as much oxygen as we have seen since we arrived. He was able to move on a limited basis and the nurse said he was doing well. We were happy that he was functioning on his own to a degree and felt that today another milestone was achieved. He is still hooked up to a dozen lines and machines but just a little movement from a toe or a tongue is a welcome sign for scared parents. It will still be a long time before we see an opened eye or hear a word but we are encouraged. This was most of today's happening and I am going to say good night and wish everyone a good Sunday.

Friday February 20th Surgery II

Hello and thank you to everyone out there. Today was eventful. Mom and I got up and to the hospital for the 6:00 a.m. visit. I have told Clay, who is always on his way to Mom and Dad's bed early each morning, that it is our turn to come to his bed early each day. When we arrived at 6:00 the wonderful night nurse (Jennifer) told us that the first surgery of the day had been canceled and Clay was number 1 on the O.R. list. We were allowed to stay in the room as they prepped him for surgery and the wheeled him out at about 7:00 a.m. Around 9:30 we saw Dr. Purdue the, "Burn Boss" he said the first portion had gone as planned and after a brief break they would proceed with the grafting procedure. A little bit before 11:00 a.m. they wheeled him out of the elevators and past the waiting room window. Several anxious people were up watching him as he made his grand entrance back to his new home, the ICU burn unit on the 6th floor. The doctor followed shortly and told us that they had completed three successful procedures: 1. Placement of the trachea tube. 2. A bridled feeding tube in his nose. 3.Complete grafting of his chest and stomach. The doctor said Clay was strong and had remained stable through all procedures. He also stated that if all goes well next week we would give Clay a short vacation and not schedule surgery III until Friday of next week. I told Clay's mom he would get lazy lying around all week. I am sure his little body needs some recovery time. As soon as his day nurse (Danielle) had him in fresh bandages they came down to the waiting room and let Deidra and I go visit. We as scared and proud parents assured him and ourselves that he looked great. We lost a helpmate today. Jenae had to return to Indiana to assume her duties with her own family. If we seem a bit unorganized from this point forward you will know why. We had several visitors today and are appreciative to all who stop in. We received a very special poem from our friend the world renowned poet Lee Wiley Burch of Newcastle, TX. Although I did not ask his permission I would like to end this update with his poem. It's pretty hard to type this and it really touched us. Thank you Lee

"Little Wrangler"
For Clay David Fite

Hey there little wrangler-We're all prayin for you here,
That again you'll run and laugh and play on your ranch now wet with tears
That we cried because we love you, and miss your smiling face,
and we'll smile too, then dry our eyes, when God returns you to this place.

Be strong, little wrangler - and us big folks will do the same,
because God is so much more to us than just a holy name-
We'll place our hands together - so His may cure and mend,
Your painful wounds - my broken heart - and those of all your friends.

Get well now, Little Wrangler - you've got a lot to do,
There's horses to feed and steers to show and brothers - to name a few.
There's school and girls and pickups - and things you've yet to dream-
and enough cousins down the road to play to start up your own team!

Sleep tight now, Little Wrangler - while I write to Mom & Dad -
To let them know we love 'em - even more when times grow sad,
I know your hearts are heavy - life sometimes can be unfair-
But keep holding God and each other for that little Wrangler over there.

Vaya con Dios, my friends-
with love -
Lee Wiley Burch
February 19, 2009

Blood Donation at MD Anderson in Houston

My cousin sent me this if anyone is interested:

This is information came directly from Carter Blood Bank. I have been working with them on this for the last 2 days. As long as people donate at MD Anderson in Houston, Clay will get the credits. You are correct that Parkland will not work with any other blood bank but Carter will work with MD Anderson. Once blood is donated in Clay’s name, MD Anderson passes the information on to Carter. I have been assured by Carter that Clay will receive the credits as long as individuals follow the instructions that Monica and I have forwarded. Several of us donated yesterday in Clay’s name and it was a simple process. Please instruct people to go to the Holly Hall/Almeda location. The people that work there know the situation so it might be easier for folks who are trying to donate. Brandon went yesterday and had no problems.


Thanks, Chrysta!! from Jenae, Chance and DD

Thursday February 19th

Hello to all. Thanks for all the prayers, visits, food,friends,notes,well wishes and support. Clay had a bit of a tough early morning today. They came in to give him a breathing treatment early this morning and when they hooked him back up to the ventilator the tube that had been inserted in the Olney hospital failed. He could not get all of his oxygen with part of it escaping from the tube. Inserting a new tube was a tricky procedure due to the swelling. The young lady that was his respiratory therapist stood holding the breathing tube together for well over one hour. The night physician was not comfortable replacing the tube and they were considering an emergency tracheotomy. They put in a call to the children's hospital that is attached to Parkland and they sent a team over that successfully placed the new breathing tube in Clay's throat. Clay also had the feeding tube that was in his mouth removed and a new one was placed in his stomach through his nose. All of this made for a long morning for Clay and it took a large portion of the day to get him stabilized. By the afternoon he was resting nicely and the doctors made the decision to proceed with the surgery scheduled for Friday morning the 20th. The first order of business will be the placement of the trachea tube that will be essential to most of his remaining surgeries. If he is stable after the trachea tube procedure they will attempt to graft his entire chest and stomach. Please remember Clay in your prayers, tomorrow is an important day for him.

visiting hours

For those planning to visit, come anytime, but please note: Chance and DD will be in the room with Clay during these hours:

6:00 am - 7:00 am
8:00 am - 9:00 am
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
7:30 pm - 8:00 pm

The doctors want to limit his exposure because of the possibility of infection.

Wednesday Feburary 18th

Good evening to all. Today was pretty uneventful except for the fact that we had a wonderful nurse all day and several unexpected visits from dear friends. Some of the swelling is starting to subside and we are excited about the possibility of seeing Clay's blue eyes eventually. We make every scheduled visit throughout the day and read him stories or just let him know what a big boy he is. He is bandaged from head to waist and is really a tough sight but we would love to be able to lift him out of that bed and give him a big hug. His feet are in perfect shape so they get the most attention. I hope he enjoys his foot rubs because that is our only option right now. We appreciate all of the help and thoughtfulness of everyone we have seen or heard from. Please keep Clay in your thoughts and prayers he still needs all the help he can get. Mom and Grandma went home tonight to see Carson and Cody. Deidra has not had an opportunity to visit or hug the boys and Cody was a little under the weather. She will be back in the morning when she get them to school and all pointed the right direction. -Chance-

March Blood Drive in Graham, TX

To those of you in the Olney area: The Carter Blood Bank cannot come to Olney because it's out of their area, but there will be another blood drive in Graham in addition to the one on Feb 22.

March 2, 2009 at the Graham Wal-mart parking lot from 1:30 to 6 p.m.

Thanks, Valerie, for setting this one up. :)

Current Address for Fite's

There are some who have asked about sending flowers, cards, etc. Clay CANNOT have these things in his room now. Chance, DeeDee and the boys (when they come on the weekends) are staying at the Ronald McDonald House near the hospital. They will be here for 60 days and depending on Clay's condition when 60 days are up, they may be here longer. So, if you feel you want to send a card or flowers or whatever, it can be sent here for now. Also, cards can still be sent to their home address in Olney. DeeDee's mom will be staying there with Carson and Cody to help out and will bring them their mail on the weekends.

Chance and Deidra Fite
c/o Ronald McDonald House
Room 14
5641 Southwestern Medical
Dallas, TX 75235
(214) 631-7354


Their home address in Olney is:

679 FM 3329
Olney, TX 76374

Monetary Donation Information

There have been two fund accounts set up at two different banks. Both banks accept checks mailed to the funds and both accept wired money, but one of the banks has a $10 wire fee. Info is as follows:

Citibank
106 N. Hwy 79
Olney, TX 76374
(940) 564-5502

Fund name: Chance Fite Family

Citibank DOES charge a $10 wire transfer fee . In order to do a wire transfer you need to call the bank direct. This would be a good bank to send a check to to avoid the wire charge. You can go to any Citibank in the nation and donate. Checks can be made payable to: Chance Fite Family


The next bank:

First National Bank of Olney
307 W. Main
Olney, TX 76374
(940) 564-5516

Fund Name: Fite Family Benefit Account

First National Bank DOES NOT charge a wire transfer fee. You must call the bank directly to do a wire transfer. Checks can be make payable to: Fite Family Benefit

When sending checks or money orders to either bank use the addresses provided above with "Attn to" then the fund name that you choose in the address line.

Hope this helps those waiting to help! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Blood Donation Centers

This is the link to the site with locations: http://www.carterbloodcare.org/donorcenter.aspx



Addison Donor Center (Addison, TX)Allen Donor Center (Allen, TX)Arlington Donor Center (Arlington, TX)
H.E.B. Donor Center (Bedford, TX)Burleson Interim Donor Site (Burleson, TX)Canton Walmart (Canton, TX)Cedar Hill Donor Center (Cedar Hill, TX)Preston Valley Donor Center (Dallas, TX)Dallas Interim Donor Site (Dallas, TX)Dallas (Baylor) Donor Center (Dallas, TX)Denton Donor Center (Denton, TX)Forest Park Donor Center (Fort Worth, TX)Hulen Donor Center (Fort Worth, TX)Garland Donor Center (Garland, TX)Grand Prairie Donor Center (Grand Prairie, TX)Greenville Interim Donor Site (Greenville, TX)Irving Donor Center (Irving, TX
Jacksonville Tractor Supply (Jacksonville, TX)Keller Donor Center (Keller, TX)Lewisville Donor Center (Lewisville, TX)Longview Donor Center (Longview, TX)Lufkin Donor Center (Lufkin, TX)Mansfield Donor Center (Mansfield, TX)Marshall Donor Center (Marshall, TX)Mesquite Donor Center (Mesquite, TX)Mineola Interim Donor Site (Mineola, TX)Mount Pleasant Donor Center (Mount Pleasant, TX)Palestine Tractor Supply Co (Palestine, TX)Paris Donor Center (Paris, TX)Plano Donor Center (Plano, TX)Stephenville Interim Donor Site (Stephenville, TX)Tyler Donor Center (Tyler, TX)
Waco Donor Center (Waco, TX)Weatherford - CVS Pharmacy (Weatherford, TX)

Surgery Update

Clay spent about three and a half to four hours in surgery today in what appears to be the first in a long string of appearances in the operating room. The burn staff was encouraged by his strength and took the opportunity to graft nearly the entire portion of his little burned back. He came in and out of the anesthesia with no problems. In recovery, his blood pressure dropped slightly but the doctors anticipated this and quickly rectified the situation. The doctor in charge told us that if all goes well in the next couple of days they will schedule another procedure for Friday of this week. Friday's operation will entail the placement of a trachea tube and possible grafts to the arms and shoulders. More news will follow as soon as we know. -Chance

Clay is in his first surgery

Just a quick update here this morning. Clay went in for his first skin grafts this morning about 9:45 (Central). They expect him to be in there until early afternoon. We'll update the status at that point, based on the reports from the doctors.

Clay's family was able to see him this morning before surgery. One little bit of good news: when they unwrapped the bandages from his body, they found that some of the skin was in much better shape than they expected - especially on his arms. This was encouraging for both the doctors and the parents! Most of the injury is on his head, chest and back and he will still have to undergo extensive grafts in those areas - but we're thankful for any good news at this point.

All for now, thank you all SO MUCH for the love, thoughts and prayers. They mean more than we can ever express!

Mistake about Blood Drive in Olney

Due to a mixup of information, there will not be blood drives in Olney in March through the Red Cross. The ONLY blood bank that people can donate to is the Carter Blood Bank! The hospital where Clay is does not work with the Red Cross Blood Centers from what I have been told. Please remember that. To those of you who are out of the area to donate blood: there will be a website posted on here about how to send donations of money or whatever as soon as I can get it. This is all new and there are mistakes being made, so sorry if we have confused any of you.

We will hope to have a blood drive in Olney at some point so we will keep you posted for a later date! Thanks so much

Emails

I (Jenae) have received many messages on my email and my Facebook account and to those of you who sent them, I am saving them for Chance and DeeDee to read when they get the time to sit a think a bit. I have written down the names of all who have expressed their feelings and will pass that on tomorrow. I will try to answer as many emails as I can. Sorry if I can't get you written back and if I don't it's not because I didn't want to, it's because I might forget. I don't have many chances to get to a computer during the day, but will do my best to get the lastest information as soon as I can. Thanks for understanding. Jenae

Clay's Surgery

Clay made it through the day today with no problems. He is scheduled to have the first of many surgeries on Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. It will be a surgery to do skin grafts on his back. The whole procedure will be done with him lying on his stomach. We are told that any surgery done to the torso area cannot have a tournequet (sp?...I cannot think of how to spell it correctly!) so there will be a significant amount of bleeding. This is why the blood donations are so important! If he makes it through this surgery without any huge setbacks then they will do a tracheotomy and maybe some more skin grafts on his arm and shoulder on Friday morning.

Chance and Deidra want everyone to know how much they appreciate the outpouring of support from everyone! They cannot say thanks enough. Thanks for everyone's kindness, love, prayers, thoughts, emotional support, hugs, tears, calls, visits, and all that has been brought to the hospital. Thanks to those of you in the Olney area that are doing things to help out at the house: feeding the livestock, taking care of the boys, etc. They are so lucky to have a wide group of wonderful people willing to give their all to help. Hugs to all of you and pray that all goes smoothly!

Blood Drive Information

There will be a blood drive in Graham TX on Sun Feb 22nd, 1-5PM at the First Baptist Church. Tell them it is for Clay Fite, and the sponsor number is SPON047572.Any Carter Blood Bank will also utilize this sponsor number when you donate.

New Email

If anyone has any questions, please email Jenae Bishop (DeeDee's sister) at gradynjenae@yahoo.com and I will check email as much as possible. Due to the large amount of visitors and the things going on at the hospital I will try my best to keep everyone updated and current on what is going on. Thanks for your thoughts, prayers, kindness, and patience in all of this. The family is grateful. Chance and DD will probably not be keeping up with email for a while, but I will try and answer any questions for those who ask.

Monetary Donations

We are currently in the process of setting up a place where those who wish can donate money to a fund to help Clay and his family make it through this difficult time. Many banks are closed on President's day so we will let you know when we get this set up as soon as possible. Thanks for your patience.

Blood Donations

Many have been asking about what they can do. The doctors frowned on sending flowers, stuffed animals, etc. These things cannot be in the room with Clay. What is needed is blood!! Lots of it! The Carter Blood Bank here in the Dallas area will be taking blood, any type, at any of their centers. The office here was not open today, but we will try in the morning to get all the information for those wanting to donate blood. We will get a sponsor number set up so when you give them the sponsor number and Clay's birthday (July 12, 2003 and Clay Fite) all the blood donated will all be for Clay. He will get all the credits. I will update this ASAP

February 15, 2009

Today was a hectic day. Many, many, many visitors came to see the family and show their love and support. Thanks to all who took time out of their day to come by the hospital or make a phone call. Thanks to all who brought in food and drinks - they are appreciated very much. Thanks to all who brought games, teddy bears and other gives of thoughtfulness. Although Chance and Deidra may not be able to thank you specifically (they are still in shock and have so much going on) they do appreciate it!As for Clay, his vital signs were where they needed to be today. His body temp was cooler than normal so the heat is turned up in his ICU room and he's covered with a sheet of plastic and covered in blankets to keep him warm. They say they don't know how much he can hear, but his family talks to him anyway. Chance and DeeDee can rub his feet and the lower parts of his legs. His kidneys are functioning well. They gave him pedialyte this a.m. and it went through him just fine. He is being fed with a tube in his tummy and has a tube in this throat. He is on a machine to help him breath. He is wrapped in gauze and is really swollen, but the swelling was expected to be worse this latter part of the 24hr period after the accident. Clay will have the first of many surgeries on Tuesday. The little trooper has a long road ahead of him, but we know he can make it because he's a fighter.

February 14, 2009

Clay was admitted to the Parkland Memorial Hospital today for extensive burns over his little body. Chance had put a bag of trash in the burn barrel and started the fire then went into town for some things. Carson (age 10), Cody (age 6 - will be 7 on Feb 23) and Clay were out playing in the yard and decided that the fire had burned down too low and needed a little "help" to finish off the trash. One of the boys grabbed a can of gas out of the storage shed and coaxed another to "put it on the fire." Clay had climbed up close to make sure the job was done right, and as the gas hit the fire, it mushroomed up into the sky. Deidra was in the house and heard the explosion and immediately ran out the back. The front of Carson's pant leg was on fire and he managed to get it out then helped put out the fire that had started in the yard and on the fence. Cody was hitting flames off the back of his neck and somehow extinguished them. He only suffered minor burns to the back of his neck and a burn on the back of his right ear and singed hair. Although his brothers were partially protected by the burn barrel itself, Clay was right in the line of the fire, and when DeeDee saw him he was engulfed in flames. In DeeDee's panic, she grabbed the water hose and doused Clay to put out the fire. The 911 call that DeeDee placed claimed that they could not pinpoint the address. With 911 on the line and calling Chance from her cell phone, Chance ended up arriving within seconds from the grocery store. Chance immediately scooped up Clay and had him at the hospital in no time. The two other boys were taken to the hospital, treated and released. Clay ended up with burns on his face, head, back, stomach, arms, hands. He was wearing boots and jeans so the lower parts of his legs are fine. Clay was flown to Dallas with his dad by his side. Some friends drove DeeDee (she was in no condition to drive)to Dallas and they arrived within 15 minutes of the helicopter. Clay is in critial condition in the Burn Intensive Care Unit here at Parkland Memorial Hospital. The wonderful care of the staff in the burn unit has been great. Not only the staff, but other families of burn victims have been a huge help to the Fite family during this time.